The Ethiopian government on Monday said it has established a seven-member committee to hold peace talks with the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) in a bid to end the ongoing civil war, reported The New Times.
The committee will be chaired by Demeke Mekonen, the country’s deputy prime minister and foreign minister.
Ethiopia’s Justice Minister Gedion Timotheos said the governing Prosperity party would only agree to the African Union leading the peace process, a stance already rejected by the rebels.
“It has been decided that the peace process can only be led by the African Union,” said Gedion, a member of the party’s central committee.
The Ethiopian justice minister said ruling party’s committees have detailed out guidelines for the peaceful resolution of the conflict, and warned that any breakdown in talks could lead to a resumption of fighting.
He said negotiation talks must comply with the legal and constitutional framework and respect the essential interests of the country.
Earlier this month, Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed had announced that a committee would be set up to prepare for possible negotiations, after the government had declared a “humanitarian truce” in March that has led to a cease in the fighting.
The TPLF has however already ruled out any negotiations led by the AU, protesting at the proximity of its envoy Olusegun Obasanjo, the former Nigerian president, to the Ethiopian leader.
Instead, earlier this month, the rebels said they were ready for negotiations hosted by Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta, and that there was already an existing agreement among the rivals to meet in Nairobi.
The clashes erupted in Tigray when Abiy sent troops in to oust the TPLF, a move he said came in response to rebel attacks on army camps. Thousands of people have since been killed in Tigray, and the neighbouring regions of Afar and Amhara.
Millions are also in the grip of a humanitarian crisis, with many in Tigray on the brink of famine.
